PLANS to slash household rubbish collections to once a fortnight have caused outrage among residents.

Residents in Middlewich could see waste collections halved by Congleton Borough Council in a bid to cut costs after it revealed a £1m shortfall for the next financial year.

Councillors haven't finalised the plans but a similar fortnightly collection scheme was introduced in Vale Royal in April last year to a storm of complaints. Reports have included rat infestations, bins filled with maggots and vile smells, especially in warmer months, but recycling rates have gone through the roof.

The Middlewich scheme will operate along similar lines, with recyclable waste - tins, glass, paper, plastic, cardboard and garden waste - collected once a fortnight, with all residual household waste collected on alternate weeks. Households will be given a brown bin for garden waste and a black bin for residual waste, plus other containers for other recyclables.

The council's Conservative leader, Roland Domleo, admitted huge sums of money need to be saved from services in the council's coming financial year if it is going to meet its budget, after revelations that its finance department was in disarray.

He said: 'In view of the budget problems, over which we have no control, we asked officers to come up with suggestions.

'If the council decides not to proceed along this route then £120,000 will have to be saved from another service in this budget-setting process.

'The Government is setting tighter recycling targets for authorities, with potential fines of up to £150 per tonne for those who fall short.'

Cllr Domleo wants 40% of all rubbish recycled, and has revealed plans to introduce the brown bins for garden waste to every household and scrap the £15 charge with the help of a Government grant.

He said: 'Fortnightly collections are the way forward. Even if we do not get it in by October it will happen.'

But the borough council's Liberal Democrat group leader, Rod Fletcher, says his concern is the long-term sustainability of the cost-cutting proposals.

He said: 'Anyone will welcome better recycling but it has to be sustainable. The council will get a grant to introduce the scheme but that only lasts 12 months. We have to go slowly. I know of a council which had to revert back to weekly collections because it was done wrong.'